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SixOfSpades · 12-13-2001, 04:57 PM

My spellcaster (singular) wasn't huffing or puffing, she only cast 2 of them herself--the rest came from scrolls (I bought out Sundries and High Hedge, and there were also a few others in the game). She's an Elven Mage/Thief, which is a BAD choice when using Skull Traps--Edwin would have been MUCH better: He would have had 5 Level 3 Spell slots open, as compared to my Mage's 2 slots, AND the damage deat by Skull Traps is a function of their caster's level. Not that I'd form a party of all Mages and take them all to Level 9 just so they could cast Skull Traps for this one event, though--I wonder how Lemernis's all-spellcaster party is faring?

Another tactic would be to go around the Sword Coast, getting EVERY recruitable NPC who can use a Bow, and taking them (in several trips, of course) to the first floor of Durlag's and dropping them off. Then one by one, recruit them, give them a decent bow and 5 Arrows of Detonation, kick them out, and quickly Charm them in case they don't like your Rep. Group everybody in a big herd, cast Haste.....and summon that Demonknight. Whoa baby!

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As for other folks in the world of ToSC: Dradeel is a surprisingly easy kill, actually. You can whack him before of after you give him his spellbook back (beforehand is easier); you don't get any EXP for his quest anyway. He DOES wear a Neutral Archmagi robe, and you suffer no Rep loss for killing him. (Actually, I don't think ANYTHING you do on that island can/should affect your Rep--it's not like your reputation can follow you back to the mainland.)

Shandalar, on the other hand, is IMPOSSIBLE to kill, without cheating, and it would take a hell of a lot of cheating (creating an instant-kill weapon, for instance) to do it. You can get some free damage in the first time you go to Ulgoth's Beard by having your best Thief open a friendly conversation by Backstabbing him. IF your Thief hits, Shandalar takes some damage (I think my Thief did a whopping 12 damage on him), but doesn't go hostile--he just tells you about the quest he wants to send you on.
But then comes the actual FIGHT, which you cannot win. I like to Charm Dushai and make her my Tank (she's Resistant to most of his magic), then Dispel his defenses and have MY Tank use a scroll of Magic Protection and start swinging, while my Hasted archers use Arrows of Piercing. I did 4 Damage to him, which I wouldn't have gotten if I hadn't rolled a Critical Hit. Shandalar must have an AC of -20, Magic Resistance of 150%, perfect Saving Throws, and God knows how many Hitpoints. Even with a Charmed Garrick doing his Bard Song for me, I'd still have to roll a 19 even to touch the guy--and, like the Demonknight, he teleports away after his spells are cast. There IS no way to kill him.

12-13-2001, 04:57 PM	#4
SixOfSpades Dracolisk Join Date: September 16, 2001 Location: Bellingham, WA, USA Age: 46 Posts: 6,901	My spellcaster (singular) wasn't huffing or puffing, she only cast 2 of them herself--the rest came from scrolls (I bought out Sundries and High Hedge, and there were also a few others in the game). She's an Elven Mage/Thief, which is a BAD choice when using Skull Traps--Edwin would have been MUCH better: He would have had 5 Level 3 Spell slots open, as compared to my Mage's 2 slots, AND the damage deat by Skull Traps is a function of their caster's level. Not that I'd form a party of all Mages and take them all to Level 9 just so they could cast Skull Traps for this one event, though--I wonder how Lemernis's all-spellcaster party is faring? Another tactic would be to go around the Sword Coast, getting EVERY recruitable NPC who can use a Bow, and taking them (in several trips, of course) to the first floor of Durlag's and dropping them off. Then one by one, recruit them, give them a decent bow and 5 Arrows of Detonation, kick them out, and quickly Charm them in case they don't like your Rep. Group everybody in a big herd, cast Haste.....and summon that Demonknight. Whoa baby! - - - - - As for other folks in the world of ToSC: Dradeel is a surprisingly easy kill, actually. You can whack him before of after you give him his spellbook back (beforehand is easier); you don't get any EXP for his quest anyway. He DOES wear a Neutral Archmagi robe, and you suffer no Rep loss for killing him. (Actually, I don't think ANYTHING you do on that island can/should affect your Rep--it's not like your reputation can follow you back to the mainland.) Shandalar, on the other hand, is IMPOSSIBLE to kill, without cheating, and it would take a hell of a lot of cheating (creating an instant-kill weapon, for instance) to do it. You can get some free damage in the first time you go to Ulgoth's Beard by having your best Thief open a friendly conversation by Backstabbing him. IF your Thief hits, Shandalar takes some damage (I think my Thief did a whopping 12 damage on him), but doesn't go hostile--he just tells you about the quest he wants to send you on. But then comes the actual FIGHT, which you cannot win. I like to Charm Dushai and make her my Tank (she's Resistant to most of his magic), then Dispel his defenses and have MY Tank use a scroll of Magic Protection and start swinging, while my Hasted archers use Arrows of Piercing. I did 4 Damage to him, which I wouldn't have gotten if I hadn't rolled a Critical Hit. Shandalar must have an AC of -20, Magic Resistance of 150%, perfect Saving Throws, and God knows how many Hitpoints. Even with a Charmed Garrick doing his Bard Song for me, I'd still have to roll a 19 even to touch the guy--and, like the Demonknight, he teleports away after his spells are cast. There IS no way to kill him. __________________ Volothamp's Comeuppance Everything you ever needed to know about the entire Baldur's Gate series......except spoilers.